University of Mumbai

GNVS Institute of Management

GTB Nagar, Sion-Koliwada(E), Mumbai-400037

Industry Oriented Report

A.Y. 2021-22

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of

Masters in Management Studies

Specialization: Marketing

Topic: Ecommerce: The Indian Scenario

Submitted by:
Name: ANAGHA RAVINDRA AROSKAR
Roll No: 202053

Under the Guidance of

Professor Name: Dr. Yashoda Durge

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 DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the Industry Oriented Report submitted for the MMS
Degree programme at GNVS Institute of Management (Affiliated to University
of Mumbai) is my original work and is conducted under my Mentor guidance.

Place: Mumbai

Date:

(ANAGHA RAVINDRA AROSKAR)

Signature of the Student

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 Certificate

This is to certify that the Industry Oriented Report is the bonafide work, carried
out by Ms. ANAGHA RAVINDRA AROSKAR, student of MMS programme, at GNVS
Institute of Management (Affiliated to University of Mumbai) during the period
of 2021 to 2022, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the
Degree of Master in Management Studies.

Place: Mumbai ANAGHA RAVINDRA AROSKAR

Signature of Student
Date:

Signature of Internal Guide Signature of External Examiner

College seal Signature of Director

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my gratitude to my Guide ( Dr. Yashoda Durge), GNVS Institute of Management for
providing me valuable information, guidance, support, and encouragement throughout my Project.

I am grateful to GNVS Institute of Management for giving me an opportunity to pursue MMS

programme. I wish to thank Dr. R. K. Saily, Director, GNVS Institute of Management who has been a
perpetual source of inspiration and offered valuable suggestions.

I would like to express my thanks to all people for their support and guidance from time to time
during my industry oriented report.

Place: Mumbai Date:

Signature of the student

(ANAGHA RAVINDRA AROSKAR)

TABLE OF CONTENT

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 PAGE
CHAPTER NO TITLE NO

1 Introduction 6

2 Objective of Study 18

3 Review of Literature 25

4 Research methodology 28

5 Data Analysis 31

6 Conclusion & References 52

Emergence Of Ecommerce-A Brief

History Of Indian Scenario:

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 www.flipcart.com

1.1 Introduction:
E-commerce (electronic commerce) is the activity of electronically buying or
selling of products on online services or over the Internet. E-commerce draws
on technologies such as mobile commerce, electronic funds transfer, supply
chain management, Internet marketing, online transaction processing, electronic
data interchange (EDI), inventory management systems, and automated data
collection systems. E-commerce is in turn driven by the technological advances
of the semiconductor industry, and is the largest sector of the electronics
industry.

E-commerce typically uses the web for at least a part of a transaction's life cycle
although it may also use other technologies such as e-mail. Typical e-commerce
transactions include the purchase of products (such as books from Amazon) or
services (such as music downloads in the form of digital distribution such as

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iTunes Store). There are three areas of e-commerce: online retailing, electronic
markets, and online auctions. E-commerce is supported by electronic business.

Electronic commerce more well known as e-commerce consists of the

buying or selling of products via electronic means such as the internet or other
electronic services. This type of trade has been growing rapidly because of the
expansion of the Internet.
The need for electronic commerce emerged from the need to use computers
more efficiently in banks and corporations. With the increasing competition,
there was a need amongst organizations to increase customer satisfaction and
information exchange. Electronic commerce started with the introduction of
electronic funds transfer (EFT) by banks. Over time many variants of EFTs
within banks were introduced like debit cards, credit cards, and direct deposits.

Everything you need to know about the E- Commerce. The term electronic
commerce or e-commerce refers to any sort of business transaction that involves
the transfer of information through the internet.
By definition it covers a variety of business activities which use internet as a
platform for either information exchange or monetary transaction or both at
times.E-commerce means using the Internet and the web for business
transactions and/or commercial transactions, which typically involve the
exchange of value (e.g., money) across organizational or individual boundaries
in return for products and services.

E-commerce businesses may also employ some or all of the followings:

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a) Online shopping for retail sales direct to consumers via Web sites and
mobile apps, and conversational commerce via live chat, chat bots, and
voice assistants;
b) Providing or participating in online market places, which process third-
party business-to-consumer (B2C) or consumer-to-consumer (C2C) sales;
c) Business-to-business (B2B) buying and selling;
d) Gathering and using demographic data through web contacts and social
media;
e) Business-to-business (B2B) electronic data interchange;
f) Marketing to prospective and established customers by e-mail or fax (for
example, with newsletters);
g) Engaging in pre tail for launching new products and services;
h) Online financial exchanges for currency exchanges or trading purposes.

Here we focus on digitally enabled commercial transactions among

organizations and individuals. Electronic commerce, known as E-Commerce,
occurs daily when sellers and buyers use the internet to conduct business
transactions. Technology makes it possible for anyone to buy or sell practically
anything online. E-commerce means using the Internet and the web for business
transactions and/or commercial transactions, which typically involve the
exchange of value (e.g., money) across organizational or individual boundaries
in return for products and services.Here we focus on digitally enabled
commercial transactions among organizations and individuals. E-business
applications turn into e-commerce precisely, when an exchange of value occurs.
Digitally enabled transactions include all transactions mediated by digital
technology and platform; that is, transactions that occur over the Internet and
the web.
Originally,electronic commerce meant the facilitation of commercial
transactions electronically, using technology such as Electronic Data
Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). These were both
introduced in the late 1970s, allowing businesses to send commercial documents
like purchase orders or invoices electronically. The growth and acceptance of
credit cards, automated teller machines (ATM) and telephone banking in the
1980s were also forms of electronic commerce. Another form of E-commerce
was the airline and railway reservation system.

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E-Commerce – History of E-Commerce

Early Development:

The history of E-commerce begins with the invention of the telephone at the end
of last century. EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) is widely viewed as the
beginning of ecommerce if we consider ecommerce as the networking of
business communities and digitalization of business information. Large
organizations have been investing in development of EDI since sixties. It has
not gained reasonable acceptance until eighties. The meaning of electronic
commerce has changed over the last 30 years.

Originally, electronic commerce meant the facilitation of commercial

transactions electronically, using technology such as Electronic Data
Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). These were both
introduced in the late 1970s, allowing businesses to send commercial documents
like purchase orders or invoices electronically. The growth and acceptance of
credit cards, automated teller machines (ATM) and telephone banking in the
1980s were also forms of electronic commerce. Another form of E-commerce
was the airline and railway reservation system.

Online shopping, an important component of electronic commerce was invented

by Michael Aldrich in the UK in 1979. The world’s first recorded business to
business was Thomson Holidays in 1981. The first recorded Business to
consumer was Gateshead SIS/Tesco in 1984. During the 1980s, online shopping
was also used extensively in the UK by auto manufacturers such as Ford,
General Motors and Nissan. The systems used the switched public telephone
network in dial-up and leased line modes.

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From the 1990s onwards, electronic commerce would additionally include
enterprise resource planning systems (ERP), data mining and data warehousing.
An early online information marketplace, including online consulting, was the
American Information Exchange, another pre Internet online system
introducedin 1991. Although the Internet became popular worldwide around
1994 when the first internet online shopping started, it took about five years to
introduce security protocols and DSL allowing continual connection to the
Internet. By the end of 2000, many European and American business companies
offered their services through the World Wide Web.Since then people began to
associate a word “Ecommerce” with the ability of purchasing various goods
through the Internet using secure protocols and electronic payment services.

www.medium.com

The Internet and the Web:

The Internet was conceived in 1969, when the Advanced Research Projects
Agency (a Department of Defense organization) funded research of computer
networking. The Internet could end up like EDI without the emergence of the
World Wide Web in 1990s. The Web became a popular mainstream medium
(perceived as the fourth mainstream medium in addition to print, radio and TV)
in a speed which had never been seen before. The Web users and content were
almost doubled every a couple of months in 1995 and 1996.

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E-Commerce – Objectives:

The various objectives of the e-commerce can be laid down

as follows:

1.Development of Business-Relationship:
The business development can be done through the e-commerce being the
primary and the basic object. As their direct contact in between the company
and the consumer, their business relationship will be enhanced. Hence the area
of the market can be increased.

2. Better-Customer Service:
As it is done round the clock, the customer will always have online help
regarding the products. As all the information is furnished to the customer, it
becomes easy to him to choose the best product among all other alternatives. As
even the service can also be done through the net immediately, the customer
service will be ballooned. By highlighting the customer service, the companies
are trying to subjugate a lion-share in the market.

As it is done round the clock, the customer will always have online help
regarding the products. As all the information is furnished to the customer, it
becomes easy to him to choose the best product among all other alternatives. As
even the service can also be done through the net immediately, the customer
service will be ballooned. By highlighting the customer service, the companies
are trying to subjugate a lion-share in the market.

Traditional commerce is taking place since times immemorial but E-commerce

is result of integration of digital technology with business processes and
commercial transactions. The technological foundations of E-commerce are
internet, WWW and various protocols.

Buying and selling take place through websites in E-Commerce. The websites
can be accessed from anywhere around the globe at any time therefore it possess
the feature of universality.

E-Commerce – Important Features: Technology-

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E-Commerce has pertain key features which are explained as follows:

1. E-Commerce is Technology-Enabled: Traditional commerce is taking

place since times immemorial but E-commerce is result of integration of digital
technology with business processes and commercial transactions. The
technological foundations of E-commerce are internet, WWW and various
protocols.

2. Technology Mediated: In E-commerce buyers and sellers meet in cyber

space rather than physical place. Hence E-commerce does not involve face to
face contact.

3. Universality: Buying and selling take place through websites in E-

Commerce. The websites can be accessed from anywhere around the globe at
any time therefore it possess the feature of universality.

4.Intercommunication: E-commerce technology ensures two way

communications between buyer and seller. On one hand by using E- commerce
firms can communicate with customers through E-commerce enabled websites.
On the other end, customers can also fill order forms, feedback forms and can
communicate with business operating firms.

5. Delivery of Information: E-commerce serves as the best channel of

communication. E-commerce technologies ensure speedy delivery of
information at very low cost and considerably increase information density as
well.

6. Electronic Completion of Business Processes: By using E- commerce we

can perform business transactions like accounting and inventory through
computers at global level.

7. Virtual Communities: Virtual Communities are online communities

created by means such as chat rooms and specifically designed sites like, where
people can interact with each other having common interest using the internet.

E-Commerce – 5 Major Types:

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E-Commerce Types:

The major different types of E-Commerce are:

I. Business-to-Business (B2B);
II. Business-to-Consumer (B2C);
III. Business-to-Government (B2G);
IV. Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C); V. Mobile Commerce (M-Commerce).

I. Business to Business (B2B):

1. Business to Business or B2B refers to E-Commerce activities between
businesses.
2. In E-Commerce B2B, transactions are usually carried out through Electronic
Data Interchange or EDI. EDI is an automated format of exchanging
information between businesses over private networks.
3. EDI is composed of standards that enable businesses’ computers to conduct
transactions with each other, without human intervention.
4. For Example- Manufacturers and wholesalers are B2B companies.

www.amazon.com

II. Business to Customer (B2C):

1. Business to Customer or B2C refers to E-Commerce activities that are
focused on consumers rather than on businesses.
2. For instance, a book retailer would be a B2C company such as Amazon.com.

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 III. Customer to Business (C2B):
1. Customer to Business or C2B refers to E-Commerce activities, which use
reverse pricing models where the customer determines the price of the
product or services.
2. For example – tele workers and online auctions are C2B processes.

IV. Customer to Customer (C2C):

1. Customer to Customer or C2C refers to E-Commerce activities, which uses
an auction style model.
2. Customers are also the business and C2C enables customers to directly deal
with each other. An example of this is peer auction giant, E Bay.

V. M-Commerce (Mobile Commerce):

1. M-commerce (mobile commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and
services through wireless technology i.e., handheld devices such as cellular
telephones and personal digital assistants. Japan is seen as a global leader in
mcommerce.
2. As content delivery over wireless devices becomes faster, more secure and
scalable, some believe that m-commerce will surpass wire line e-commerce as
the method of choice for digital commerce transactions. This may well be true
for the Asia-Pacific where there are more mobile phone users than there are
Internet users.

E-Commerce – Business Applications:

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Following are the major business application areas where E-Commerce is used
widely:
1.Sale, Purchase of Goods:
By using E-Commerce, consumers can buy the various products and services
from the different manufacturers. Industries can purchase raw materials,
components etc. using E- Commerce. Sellers can sell their products by using
Ecommerce.

2. Real Estate Market:

Online real estate services are provided by websites that show listing of houses,
shops and flats put up for sale and rent. Online real estate sites play supporting
role for property dealers.
Now builders can use virtual reality technology on their website to demonstrate
three dimensional floor plans to buyers. This helps real estate companies to
attract buyers. So transactions normally can be initiated online but materialize
offline in a face to face contact of parties. Many websites are providing online
real estate services.

3. Online Banking:
Online Banking is also known as electronic banking, Net banking, virtual
banking and internet banking online banking is defined as automated delivery of
new and traditional banking products and services through electronic and
interactive communication channels. Customers can access online banking
services by using electronic devices like personal computer, laptop, palmtop,
ATM, kiosks etc.

4. Delivery of Goods:
E-Commerce allows the delivery of products. For example, the computer
software is directly downloaded by the software manufacturer on computer of
the customer.

5. Import and Export:

Electronic payments are playing a great role in import and export business. The
internet has simplified the import and export business. By using E-commerce
importers can make enquiries about the products, their manufacturers, price,
quality, other terms and conditions etc.

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Exporters can also make enquiries about suitable customers. Payments can be
made by electronic modes including digital means like internet payment or
internet money transfer.

6. Supply Chain Management:

A supply chain is a set of relationships between a number of companies who
have a symbiotic relationship with each other in that one company supplies
commodities or services to other companies which, in turn, supply commodities
or services to other companies, and so on.

E-Commerce – Channels: Commercial Channels and

The Internet

These are of following two types:

(i) Commercial Channels:

Various companies have set up on-line information and marketing services that
can be accessed by those who have signed up for the service and pay a monthly
fee. These channels provide information, news, libraries, education, travel,
sports and reference, entertainment, shopping services, dialogues opportunities
and email etc.

(ii) The Internet:

The Internet is a global web of computer networks that has made instantaneous
and decentralised global communication possible. Internet usage has spread
with recent development of the user-friendly World Wide Web (www) browser
software such as Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Users can surf the Internet and experience fully integrated text, graphics, images
and sound. Users can send e-mail, exchange views, shop for products, and
access news and business information.

Internet Strategies for Business and Key Success Factors in E-Commerce:

Internet users are better educated, better informed. As more and more people
find their way onto the internet, the cyberspace population is becoming more
mainstream and diverse.Younger users of Internet in general place a greater
value in information, entertainment, socialising etc.
Old users are more likely to use Internet for investment and more serious
matters. In general, Internet users respond to messages aimed at selling, and
receive information about products and services.

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 www.smart.com

Consumers gain the following capabilities in the E-commerce providing

information-rich regime:

1. They can get objective information for multiple brands, including costs,
prices, features and quality without relying on the manufacturer or retailers.
2 They can initiate requests for advertising and information from manufacturers.
3. They can use software agents to search for and invite offers from multiple
sellers. These new buyer capabilities mean that the exchange process in the age
of information has become customer initiated and customer controlled.
Marketers and their representatives are held at bay till customers invite them to
participate in the exchange process, customers define the rules of engagement,
and insulate themselves with the help of agents and intermediaries.
Customers define what information they need, what products or services they
are interested in and what prices they are willing to pay.

E-Commerce – Essentials and Procedures:

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E-commerce operates digitally. It has some unique ways to put a business
transaction in place.

1. Product/Service:
For E-commerce to happen there should be a product or service that has value
and for which someone is willing to pay a price. If this criterion is met, then you
can sell anything on ecommerce websites—gadgets, books, automobiles,
grocery, toys, apparel, vegetables and digital goods such as music, e-books,
software, air tickets, magazine subscriptions and the like.

2. Processing Mechanism:
The ecommerce website of a company should put an easy process in place so
that the customer browsing through the site can place an order. The software
that makes this happen is called a shopping cart.

3. Payment Gateway:
Once the customer fills the cart with items that he or she has shopped, the site
should take the customer towards the payment gateway, which collects money
electronically. If the product is downloadable such as music, e-book etc., the
website must also provide for that after accepting payment from customer.

4. Delivery of Product:
Once customers make the payment, the e-commerce site must ensure the
delivery of product in good condition on time. Logistics is a specialized
function, so most sellers outsource it to third party logistics providers. Like
Amazon using the services of FedEx.

5. After Sale Service:

Customers need to be serviced pre-sales as well as post sales. Before the sale,
customers might have queries about product features that are not mentioned on
the website. They might have questions about customization and accessories.
After the sale, customers might have queries related to the usage, repair or
enhancement of the products or services that they have already purchased.

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E-Commerce – 4 Major Market Segments: E-Tailing, E-
Advertising and E- Marketing (With Advantages and
Disadvantages)

E-commerce is a means of conducting business, where the buying or selling of

goods and services or the transmitting of funds or data, occur via electronic
medium. There are no physical market places and the entire process of
marketing and selling of goods, takes place on-line or electronically. This
means, the buyer and the seller do not often meet face to face. It is a replica of a
physical market place in the virtual world.

E-commerce, also called e-trading, operates in all four major market segments –
Business to Business, Business to Consumer, Consumer to Consumer and
Consumer to Business. Examples of E-commerce include on-line shopping,
electronic payments, on- line auctions, internet banking, on-line ticketing etc.

1. E-Tailing:
E-Tailing is the abbreviation of electronic retailing. It is the sale of goods and
services through the internet. E-tailing involves business-to-business or
businessto-customers transactions. It can be regarded as the internet front of any
traditional retailer.

E-tailing shops believe in building strong brands. The web sites they create are
easily understood by the visitors. They also provide discounts and offers to
engage the customers. The pricing, in E-tailing shops, is generally lower than
that of a traditional shop.

In this way the e-tailing shops lure the customers to make purchases on-line.
The customers also get benefited from the fact that he/she does not need to
physically visit the shop for making the purchase. The customers are free to
make their own decisions regarding the purchase, at their own leisure time.
However, e-tailing shops need to have a strong distribution network in order to
secure the delivery of the products. Otherwise, the purpose of the e-tailing site
will be defeated. Big e-tailing sites like Ebay (dot)com and Amazon(dot)com
are making great business in this country.

Advantages of E-Tailing:

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1. No requirement of physical infrastructure.
2. Order completion is smoother than that of physical shops.
3. Customers might get addicted to on-line shopping, which in turn boost sales
and increase revenue.
4. It is easy to review the product before, actually, purchasing it.
5. Most items available on-line are cheaper with quick and easy shipping and
returns.

Disadvantages of E-Tailing:
1. Creating and maintaining an e-tailing web site is an expensive process.
2. Customers do not often get to check the actual dimensions of the products and
the quality displayed there.
3. Customers may have trust issues before providing their personal details and
credit card details.

2. E-Advertising:
E-Advertising is the mechanism of promoting products or services on-line. It is
the process of gaining attention of the customers, through the digital media.
The main purpose of e-advertising is to reach out to a wider range of customers.
It is more cost effective when compared to the traditional forms of advertising.
E-advertising also enables you to target the specific customers.On safeguard to
be taken regarding E-advertising is that advertisement had to be consistently
monitored and controlled because if it is done poorly, it can severely damage
the image of the company.

Types of E - Advertising :

There are various types of e-advertising:

(a) Wallpaper Advertising – It changes the background of the web site to the
chosen promotion.
(b) Pop Up Advertising – It pops up a new screen upon clicking on a certain
link on the web site, that it advertises the product.
(c) Floating Advertising – The floating e-advertising is a kind of a floating
banner on the web site, which tempts the visitor to click on it.
(d) Ad Sense Advertising – This refers to companies’ paying major search
engines (such as Google) to promote their business within the first three links
that appear when a search is enter

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3. E-Marketing:
Electronic marketing (e-marketing) is also known as internet marketing, web
marketing and digital marketing on on-line marketing. It is the process of
marketing a product or service using the internet, e-mail and wireless media.
Unlike e-advertising, e- marketing is very subtle. It is not always a direct
message of persuasion but rather it is something which will educate the
customers and convince them to buy the product or service.
Digital marketing techniques include Search Engine Optimization (SEO),
Search Engine Marketing (SEM), content marketing, e-commerce marketing,
social media marketing, display advertisement, marketing through SMS and on-
hold mobile ring tones, etc.
When compared to the means of traditional marketing, e-marketing offers
several advantages.

Advantages of E - Marketing :

1. E-marketing provides much better return on the investment made by the

marketer.
2. It reduces the cost of marketing campaign.
3. The marketer can easily monitor and track the results of the campaign.
4. The results are often easily measurable and quickly obtained.
5. E-marketing allows marketers to create viral content, allowing viral
marketing.

Disadvantages of E-Marketing:

1. Devising a strong online marketing campaign involves spending money, the

cost of which is ultimately borne by the customer. The cost of website design,
software, hardware, maintenance of website, online distribution cost and
invested time, are also factored in, while deciding the cost of providing a service
or a product online.
2. Website of the company has to be constantly updated, which required
research and skills and thus timing of updates are also critical.
3. Digital marketing is not suitable for marketing of industrial goods and
pharmaceutical products making it useful for only specific categories of
products, namely consumer goods.

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Types of E - Marketing :

There are several options through which the e-marketers can promote their
product and services:

1. Article Marketing – Writing articles about products and services often helps
in the process of educating the customers.
2. Affiliate Marketing – It is a kind of referral marketing where reference of
any product will be provided on the other websites and when the customer buy’s
the product based on the recommendation this website owner with gets
commission. 3. Video Marketing – In this kind of e-marketing, a video will be
shared describing the usage and benefits of the product or a service. It is often
similar to television commercials.
4. Email Marketing – Direct emails are being sent to potential customers
describing benefits of the product or service.
5. Blogging – Publishing blogs about similar products is also a very subtle way
of marketing some business.
6. Social Media Marketing – This form of marketing means promoting
company’s products and service on social media handles like Facebook, Twitter
and Instagram – It is cost-effective because these platforms allow business to
create profiles for free.

iii. Managing Ethical, Cultural and Legal Issues:

There exist big ethical and cultural differences between countries. Something
may be ethical in our country but unethical in another country. So MNCs have
to study culture of each country and develop corporate ethical code.
For example, France has certain language and cultural laws that must be obeyed.
Therefore, it is necessary that advocates, accountants and executives of the
companies must understand legal, trade, cultural and monetary issues of the
countries with which their company has to deal.

iv. Making Cost Benefit Analysis:

Company management has to make cost benefit analysis of implementing
ecommerce venture. Costs associated with e-commerce includes costs of
hardware like PC clients, web servers, transaction servers routers and other
networking devices, leased line and software like operating system, firewall,
application software, web server software and transaction processing software,
cost of recruiting and training staff for e-commerce etc.

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Benefits can be measured through economic indicators like return on investment
or through indicators like numbers of online customers, customer satisfaction
and business partner satisfaction.
Organization of developed countries that have implemented e-commerce
solutions have gained by way of realizing lower cost per transaction and taking
advantage of economies of scale. In developing countries cost may exceed
benefits in initial years of e-commerce initiatives.

Promoting E-Commerce Venture:

Company management has to take steps to promote the website.

Broadly, promotional activities can be classified into two categories: a.

Online Promotional Activities:
Online promotion is concerned with submitting your site to search engine. The
objective is to get your site registered with the search engine so that the site
appears as a link in search results of certain keywords-typed by internet user at
the search engine like Google. This requires use of appropriate keywords in
META tag.Moreover, web team needs to search related sites and contact them
so that their pages provide link to their web pages. So seeking reciprocal link is
an effective way of promoting your e-commerce web site. Moreover, e-mails
can be made of customers. Company that have advertising budget can promote
the site by placing banner ads at popular websites and porta b. Offline
Promotional Activities:
As far as offline promotion is concerned, company can advertise the web
address through visiting cards, letter pads, bill books etc. Moreover, URL can
also be advertised at various trade fairs, exhibitions and business related events
like seminars, conferences etc. Therefore, company management has to set up
advertising budget and decide the tools that it shall use to promote the
ecommerce website.

vi. To Deal with Security & Privacy Issues:

Websites collect information about visitors through filled in order forms,
questionnaires and by recording browser information thought programs like
cookies. But the personal information so collected must be used for stated
business purposes. But many surveys have shown that online consumers have
little privacy protection.
Therefore, it is necessary that company management must form privacy practice
and must assure consumers and partners that information so collected shall be
kept confidential.

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This type of data and message security needs security measures like encryption,
password protection etc. Similarly network security measures like firewall
needs to be installed so that intruders are not able to make authorized access to
corporate network. The firewall prohibits hackers from entering corporate
network via internet. Therefore management needs to set up some kind of
intrusion detection system an establish security policy.

vii. Handling Human Resource Management Related Issues:

Electronic commerce is changing the manner in which staff is recruited,
motivated, trained and educated. Two way interactions are now possible in
video conferencing used for employee training and education. So, management
needs to incorporate the impact of e-commerce on its human resource
management practices.

viii. Adopting Electronic Fund Transfer System:

Company management has to make agreement with acquiring bank, Credit Card
Company and payment gateway to ensure that it is able to receive and make
payments electronically through modes like credit cards, smart cards, e-cash etc.
The management has to devise ways and means of integrating Internet based
payment system with offline system.

E - Commerce – Advantages :

(i) Convenience – Customers can order products or services 24 hours a day

wherever they are.

(ii) Information – Customers can find reams of comparative information about

companies, products, competitors and prices without leaving their office or
home.

(iii) Fewer Hassels – Customers don’t have to face sales people or open
themselves upto persuasion and emotional factors, they also don’t have to wait
in line.

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 www.org.com

(iv) Quick Adjustment to Market Conditions by Marketers – Companies can

quickly add products to their offering and change prices and descriptions.

(v) Lower Cost – On-line Marketers avoid the expense of maintaining a store
and the costs of rent, insurance and utilities.They can produce digital catalogues
for much less cost than the cost of printing and mailing paper catalogues.

(vi) Relatively Building – On-line marketers can dialogue with consumers and
learn from them. Marketers can download useful reports or a free demo of their
softwares.

(vii) Audience Sizing – On-line Marketers can learn how many people
visited their web site and how many of them shopped at particular places on the
site. This information can help them improve offers and advertisements.

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(viii) On-line Marketing – It is easy affordable by small firms, who
otherwise would not have been able to advertise in the print or broad cost
media.

(ix) E-Commerce – E-commerce through Internet and web site can access and
retrieve information very fast, compared to overnight mail and even fax.

(x) Large and Medium – These companies have designed their own websites to
automate corporate purchasing. The high cost on invoices and purchase order
copies including time are saved a great deal due to E-commerce and Internet
phase.

(xi) Internet newsgroups set up for commercial purposes help companies place
on-line advertisements and thus save cost and time.

(xii) New groups, Bulletins board systems (BBSs) and Web committees
help also buyers, sellers and people in general to have access to valuable
information on diverse topics including information of cultivation for farmers.

E - Commerce – Disadvantages:

1. Security:
Security continues to be a problem for online businesses. Customers have to feel
confident about the integrity of the payment process before they commit to the
purchase. Banks such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India have
added secure payment gateways to process online banking transactions quickly
and safely.

2. System and Data Integrity:

Data protection and the integrity of the system that handles the data are serious
concerns. Computer viruses are rampant, with new viruses discovered every
day. Viruses cause unnecessary delays, file backups, storage problems, and
other similar difficulties. The danger of hackers accessing files and corrupting
accounts adds more stress to an already complex opera.

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3. System Scalability:
A business develops an interactive interface with customers via a website. After
a while, statistical analysis determines whether visitors to the site are one-time
or recurring customers. If the company expects 2 million customers and 6
million show up, website performance is bound to experience degradation,
slowdown, and eventually loss of customers. To stop this problem from
happening, a website must be scalable, or upgradable on a regular basis.

4. E-Commerce is Not Free:

So far, success stories in e-commerce have forced large business with deep
pockets and good funding to invest in creating on-line websites. According to a
report, small retailers that go head-to-head with e-commerce giants are fighting
losing battle. As in the brick-and-mortar environment, they simply cannot
compete on price or product offering. Brand loyalty is related to this issue,
which is supposed to be less important for online firms. Brands are expected to
lower search costs, build trust, and communicate quality. A search engine can
come up with the best music deals, for example, yet consumers continue to
flock to trusted entities such as HMV.

5. Consumer Search is not Efficient or Cost-Effective:

On the surface, the electronic marketplace seems to be a perfect market, where
worldwide sellers and buyers share and trade without intermediaries. However,
a closer look indicates that new types of intermediaries are essential to
ecommerce. They include electronic malls that guarantee legitimacy of
transactions. All these intermediaries add to transaction costs.

6. Customer Relations Problems:

Not many businesses realise that even e-business cannot survive over the long
term without loyal customers. Building customer loyalty to a specific site is not
an easy task. Customers are notoriously fickle-minded, and do not minding
visiting a competing website just to avail even one-time benefits or discounts.

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2.1 Objectives of study:

▪ Contains a study of the major internal and external factors affecting the
industry.
▪ To study the online growth retail business in india.
▪ To reveal the satisfaction level of the customer
▪ To find out the mode by which the customer became aware of flipcart.

3.1 A Review of Literature :

Some preliminary works on e-business and banking have been made through
using data analysis. This literature review was also conducted to help put the
research methodology in a better conceptual framework. In this regard the
review focused on: the evolution and definition of e-business; processes of e-
business adoption; benefits, barriers and challenges to e-business adoption.
Zwass, Melao, (2008),
E-Business probably began with electronic data interchange in the 1960s
(Zwass, 1996). However, (Melao, 2008) suggests that it was only in the 1990s,
primarily via the Internet, that e-Business has emerged as a core feature of many
organizations. In his opinion, the hope was that e-Business would revolutionize
the ways in which organizations interact with customers, employees, suppliers
and partners. Some saw e- Business as part of a recipe to stay competitive in the
global economy.
The term “e-Business” has a very broad application and means different things
to different people. Furthermore, its relation with e-commerce is at the source of
many disagreements. (Melao, 2008). A more comprehensive definition of
ebusiness is: “The transformation of an organization’s processes to deliver
additional customer value through the application of technologies, philosophies
and computing paradigm of the new economy.” In a simple sense, E-Business
can be defined as, “the organized effort of individuals to produce and sell, for
profit, products and services that satisfy society’s needs through the facilities
available on the Internet” (Brahm Canzer, 2009).

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Some authors view e-Business as the evolution of e- commerce from the buying
and selling over the Internet, and argue that the former is a subset of the latter.
( Turban et al., 2006). Others defend that, although related, they are distinct
concepts (Laudon and Traver, 2008). Others use both terms interchangeably to
mean the same thing (Schneider,2002).(Kalakota and Robinson, 2000) proposed
a definition of e-business that clearly stresses the difference between e-
commerce and e-business. More precisely they assume that “e-business is not
just about ecommerce transactions or about buying and selling over the Web; it
is the overall strategy of redefining old business models, with the aid of
technology, to maximize customer value and profits”. Kalakota and Robinson’s
definition is of great importance because it describes e- 6 business as an
essential businessreengineering factor that can promote company’s growth.
According to Melao,(2008), The clear commonalities among these definitions,
include the improvement of business processes and the use of ICT in intranets,
extranets and the Internet to conduct business. He defines e-Business as the use
of ICT as an enabler to (re)design, manage, execute, improve and control
business processes both within and between organizations. Thus, front and
back-office integration and multi-channel integration become crucial in e-
Business, which requires a challenging process improvement approach to
support the necessary organizational, technological and social changes.
The article published by Rahmath Safeena, Hema Date and Abdullah Kammani
in January 2001, states that, the various areas where the banks are preparing to
use ebusiness approach include familiar and relatively mature electronically
based products in developing markets, such as telephone banking, mobile
banking, credit cards, ATMs, and direct deposit. This means that most of the
banks have recognized the need to change their business process to conform to
changing business trends in order to keep up with competition.
The customers are using net banking, to pay the utility bills, insurance
premium, to book orders online, to book railway tickets also to book flight
tickets, purchasing the products online using net banking or online banking (e-
banking), credit cards, debit cards or smartcards also.
The development in the e-business however means that an increasing number of
jobs are being changed from traditional tellers to branch advisors/ counselors.
Bank staff is increasingly asked to provide highly qualified financial advice
rather than perform simple teller functions. By using intranet the
communication is very fast in the banks. The banks can handle their transaction
very fast online, using e-banking.

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Electronic business methods enable companies to link their internal and external
data processing systems more efficiently and flexibly, to work more closely
with suppliers and partners, and to better satisfy the needs and expectations of
their customers. EBusiness refers to more strategic focus with an emphasis on
the functions that occur using electronic capabilities.(Yen-Yi, 2006)
In the article published by Windrum, and De Berranger in 2002 focussed on the
integration of the internet and related ICTs into the business organization
forming ebusiness. It has two facets. One is the integration of the supply chain
so that production and delivery become a seamless process. The other is the
creation of new business models based on open systems of communication
between customers, suppliers and partners. Where the integration of the supply
chain provides increased efficiency and significant cost advantages through
waste minimization, the development of new products and services are
facilitated by new ways of conducting business based on internet working
between organizations and individuals.
The Stages theory has been widely used as a way of examining the adoption
and progression of various aspects of electronic business in organizations. The
main assumption of the Stages theory is that organizations progress towards
electronic business through a number of clearly defined and successive stages or
phases. Each adoption stage or phase is characterized by the existence of
distinctive applications, benefits and problems while it reflects a particular level
of maturity in terms of the use and management of Information Systems and
Information Technologies (Taylor and Murphy, 2004).
Within the Staged adoption models, early stages of electronic business adoption
are typically characterized by gaining access to the Internet followed by the use
of relatively simple applications, such as electronic mail (e-mail), in order to
dispense and gather information. Later, the business starts to publish a wider
range of information in order to market its products or services and perhaps
provide after-sales support. The deployment of electronic commerce practices
comes next, allowing the users of the corporate site to order and/or pay for
goods and services. In the most mature stages, the corporate website is fully
integrated with the various back office systems such as enterprise resource
planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), and integrated
supply chain management (SCM) applications (Mendo and Fitzgerald, 2005)

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Electronic business can be approached in many different ways, depending on
the specific business process that might be carried out through the Internet.
Thus, several Internet usage profiles or approaches are possible. A company
must determine which 8 profile or combination of profiles best suits its
particular business context and strategy (Mendo and Fitzgerald, 2005).
According to Basu and Muylle (2007), companies can gain two fundamental
types of benefits from e-Business. These are generally described as: Value
Creation or Value Enhancement for one or more of a company’s stakeholder
groups; and Lower Cost of providing goods and services to the market place.
Examples under Value Creation include Improvement in internal and external
communic communication through effective emarketing, Increment of sales
through an e-commerce website integrated with a back office systems and
Improvement in supplier relations and productivity through collaborative
workspaces (Basu and Muylle, 2007). And examples under Lower ost are:
reduction in communication and travel costs using online meeting tools; shared
workspaces and; benefit from license free open source alternatives to
proprietary software.
In banks the online banking facility allows the customer to check their balance
or pay a bill at any time of the day or night. The services offered by online
banks typically include (David Whiteley, 2001)
• Online balances and statements giving up-to-the-minute information. The
statement can be used to check that any apecific debit or credit has gone
through;
• Credit transfers so that bills can be paid online. Included, is the facility to set
up a transaction now for the bill to be paid at a later date;
• Maintenance of the standing orders and direct debits

Businesses also see tremendous opportunities for cost saving, revenue

generation, increased market share, marketing and market access, and
improving customer service through direct links that facilitate speedy enquiry
and feedback. Similarly, consumers can inter alia, access the world market
through the virtual economy on the Internet, choose from a wider variety of
products, and shop in the comfort of their homes. Globalization and specifically
liberalization of communication networks have all facilitated this break-through
that further presents a massive boost for international trade (A. K. Sohani,
2009).

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 Windrum and Berranger (2002) suggest that the commercial benefits of
ebusiness lie in five areas. Firstly, firms are able to expand their geographical
reach. Secondly, important cost benefits lie in improved efficiency in
procurement, production and logistics processes. Thirdly, there is enormous
scope for gaining through improved customer communications and
management. Fourthly, the Internet reduces barriers to entry for new market
entrants and provides an opportunity for small firms to reorient their supply
chain relationships to forge new strategic partnerships. Finally, e-business
technology facilitates the development of new types of products and new
business models for generating revenues in different ways.
According to Windrum and Berranger (2002), it is hypothesized that many
of the factors affecting the successful adoption of new technologies such as
ebusiness are generic in nature and that the successful adoption of internet
technologies in part depends on how these are used in conjunction with the
other technologies and management practices that form a ‘technology’ cluster.
According to Wang, Lin and Tang in (2003),claims that in the 1990s e-
banking was under-utilised as business organisations used it only to market their
products and services. Thornton and White (2001), examined customer
orientations and usage of financial distribution channels in the Australian
financial industry, found that more recently most financial institutions, faced
with competitive pressure after the introduction of deregulation in 1983, have
rethought their strategies to take full advantage of IT. Rafiu (2007) opines that
the challenge to expand and maintain banking market share has influenced
many banks to invest more in making better use of the Internet. The emergence
of e-banking had made many banks rethink their IT strategies in competitive
markets. This findings suggest that the banks that fail to respond to the
emergence of e-banking in the market are likely to lose customers and that the
cost of offering e-banking services is less than the cost of keeping branch
banking.
Karjaluoto in 2002 indicated that banks have the choice to offer their banking
services through various electronic distribution channels technologies such as
Internet technology, video banking technology, telephone banking technology,
and WAP technology. They also indicated that Internet technology is the main
electronic distribution channel in the banking industry. In other words, e-
banking as an online 10 banking that involves the provision of banking services
such as accessing a accounts, transferring funds between accounts, and offering
an online financial service

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According to Ayo (2006), investigated the prospects of e-commerce based on
ability, motivation and opportunities (AMO) model and observed that virtually
all companies have online presence. The paper reported the motivation and
opportunities for e-commerce as low based on lack of e-Payment infrastructure
and access to information and communication technology (ICT) facilities.
According to Chiemeke (2006),conducted an empirical investigation on
adoption of e-banking in Nigeria. The study identified the major inhibiting
factors to Internet banking adoption in Nigeria such as, insecurity, inadequate
operational facilities including telecommunications facilities and electricity
supply, and made recommendations on how Nigeria banks can narrow the
digital divide. Also, the report revealed that Internet banking is being offered at
the basic level of interactivity with most of the banks having mainly information
sites and providing little Internet transactional services.
It is to note that there are some barriers to e-business adoption. Common
barriers include: unsuitability for the type of business; enabling factors
(availability of ICT skills, qualified personnel, network infrastructure); cost
factors (ICT equipment and networks, software and re-organization); security
and trust factors (security and reliability of e-commerce systems, uncertainty of
payment methods, legal frameworks and Intellectual Property Right); and
challenges in areas of management skills, technological capabilities,
productivity and competitiveness. Lack of reliable trust and redress systems and
cross-country legal and regulatory differences also impede ebusiness adoption.
The barriers to e-Business adoption work differently according to organizational
type and culture. Areas of training and people development need to be
addressed. (Aranda-Mena and Stewart, 2005).
Many writers of e-Business and e-commerce extol the enormous potential and
opportunities provided for consumers and businesses globally. However there
are some drawbacks and the benefits to be derived tend to be overstated. Many
managers and investors are facing strong pressure to answer the question of
whether and how ebusiness investments create business value, because it is not
clear to them how this 11 value is created, and what are the factors that shape
that value, also which of them are most important (Alawneh A, and Hattab E
2009)..

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E-commerce Website Research Literature Review:
An appropriate literature review is a vital part of every academic research
assignment. A related and effective literature review lays a strong groundwork
for progressing knowledge (Webster and Watson, 2002). The study shows that
deficiency of review articles has been obstructing the development of
information systems arena (Webster and Watson, 2002).
A literature review can be conducted in many ways; Figure 1 illustrates four
methods of literature review: Narrative Review, Descriptive Review, Vote
Counting and Meta-Analysis (King and He, 2005). These four methods are
positioned on a qualitative-quantitative scale to demonstrate their dissimilar
concentrations).
Figure 1. Literature Review Methods on a Qualitative– Quantitative Scale (King
and He, 2005)
In a narrative review, the review is conducted in an oldfashioned manner. There
are no uniform processes. The review is done by verbally describing the earlier
studies, concentrating on theories and frameworks, elementary factors, and their
research outcomes, with regard to a hypothesized correlation (King and He,
2005). Narrative review depends mostly on the reviewer’s individual
preference. It is not unusual for two reviews to reach rather different
conclusions from the same literature (Guzzo et al., 1987).
A descriptive review introduces some quantification, often in a form of
frequency analysis (e.g. publication time, research methodology, research
outcomes). Descriptive review concentrates on identifying an interpretable
pattern from the existing literature (Guzzo et al., 1987). Initially, a reviewer
needs to perform a thorough literature search to gather adequate related papers
in the research area. The reviewer then gives a single study as one data record
and recognizes trends and patterns among the papers surveyed (King and He,
2005).
Vote counting usually explains the main relationships by combining individual
research results (King and He, 2005). In vote counting, calculation is made of
the occurrence with which existing research discoveries support a specific
proposal.
A sequence of tests is conducted to create perceptions.

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Meta-analysis is a statistical blend technique that provides support for a research
topic by uniting and examining the quantitative outcomes of many experiential
studies (King and He, 2005). In meta-analysis, qualitative studies have to be
omitted because of the technique’s vastly quantitative nature (King and He,
2005).
A narrative literature review method was most applicable for the existing phase
of this research. The narrative literature review was suitable in this study
because there was no uniform process followed by the author when conducting
the literature reviews for each of these documents and materials. The narrative
literature review method allowed the author to express author’s own personal
view. The author analysed and summarized the earlier studies conducted. The
process for conducting this narrative review is defined in the next section.

4.1 Research methodology:

4.2 Introduction

In this research, the goals are to reveal a background of ecommerce, culture,

website design, and narrative review as a developing research area and to
demonstrate a vision to guide future growth. This article is based on documents
and materials associated with e-commerce, culture, website design, and
narrative review. The documents and materials were collected from journals,
research papers, and published books.

Literature Exploration Scopes

To conduct literature review, it is first necessary to identify related literature

through computer and manual searches (Ngai and Wat, 2002). In this research,
related literature from various journals and conferences was identified by using
Google’s search engine. The Google search was conducted by using a keyword
search with the phrases ‘e-commerce,’ ‘culture,’ ‘website,’ and ‘narrative
review.’E-commerce is a new concept, so it is more viable to get current
information from the Internet rather than from the library when conducting
research on this topic.

Literature Filtering Method:

At first, a total of 67 literature sources were identified and scanned for relevant
topics using the Google search engine. The 67 articles included diverse issues

Page | 35
such as ecommerce, developed and developing countries, culture, website
design, localization, globalization, literature review methods, adaption of e-
commerce, trust, security, privacy, policy, gender, international trade,
information systems, information technology and distributed systems. These 67
journal articles provided an overall background regarding e-commerce. The
second step was to scan abstracts and read complete manuscripts if needed for
each article. Finally, 39 articles were studied thoroughly for the purposes of this
study. Out of 67 articles, a total of 28 articles were discarded due to various
reasons (e.g., duplicate or irrelevant information).

The previous chapter provides theories related to e-commerce adoption among

SMEs. This chapter presents the proposed model framework, the development
of hypotheses, as well as the selection of measures and questionnaire design.
The sampling design and data collection procedure, and the analysis technique
used in this study are also explained.

New Significant Findings and Research Synthesis :

The study shows that overall use of Internet and ecommerce is growing
considerably throughout the world. English is the language used in most of
these e-commerce websites; the majority of these Internet users, however, are
nonEnglish speaking, and other languages (e.g., Chinese, Spanish, Japanese,
and French) also have considerable Internet presence. E-commerce sites are
successful when they offer to sell in the customer’s language. The findings of
the case study indicate that if the e-commerce website is presented in
consumer’s language, the number of individuals visiting the ecommerce website
will be four times higher than the usual number. It is, therefore, very important
that ecommerce websites be culturally friendly (e.g., greater use of red colour,
active banners, and animations in Chinese websites; fewer colours, active
banners and animations in American websites). The types of advertisement
placed on the ecommerce websites are also important aspects to consider,
because advertisements appropriate in one culture may not be suitable for
another culture.

The future success of businesses lies in e-commerce. With the use of e-

commerce, consumers now have the ability to shop online anytime and
anywhere in the globe. The invention of computer and Internet led the people to
spend less time on other forms of entertainment such as television, radio, and
newspapers. Consumers are spending more time online, and the majority of that
time is spent on social media websites such as Facebook and Twitter. These

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computer users are potential e-commerce customers for businesses globally. To
compete and to be successful in the global e-commerce marketplace, therefore,
organizations need to focus on designing their e-commerce websites in ways
that are conveniently accessible throughout the world. As a result of this
development, organizations also need to consider localization and cultural
aspects when designing their ecommerce websites. From the developing
countries’ perspective, infrastructure, cost, security, trust, and political issues
are some of the major barriers for the overall growth of e-commerce.

This study indicates that there are correlations between ecommerce, culture, and
website design. The local cultures influence consumer behaviour as to how the
ecommerce websites are utilized and browsed. Culture expressly impacts the
users’ desire to conduct business through ecommerce websites. The research
also indicates that cultures do influence e-commerce website design.
Finally, the current study confirmed and reinforced the research questions.
There are correlations between ecommerce, culture, and website design, which
are confirmed in Table 2 and Table 3. The research shows that it is important
that ecommerce website designers consider the local cultural aspects when
designing the website to reflect the local users’ emotions, thoughts, desires, and
most importantly the culture. The different countries’ e-commerce website users
have diverse likings and reasons to use global e-commerce websites.
Ecommerce companies need to develop its websites with choices for several
languages.

Furthermore, the second research question was answered in that cultural aspects
influence the ecommerce website design; this can be shown in Table 2 as well.
The research shows that if the e-commerce website is presented in the
consumer’s language, the number of users visiting the e commerce website will
be four times higher than the usual number of visitors. Another important aspect
in the research was the type of advertisements placed in the ecommerce website,
which are also an important aspect to consider. The advertisements appropriate
in one culture may not be suitable for another culture. The research also shows
that e-commerce web page design and colours used on the web page have
diverse emotional and social consequences in the local culture. For example,
there is a greater occurrence of red colour in Chinese websites.

4.3 DEVELOPMENT OF HYPOTHESES

Many past studies have advocated that the use of e-commerce positively
Influences an organisation’s performance, specifically in terms of growth

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(Raymond et al. 2005), financial gain (Johnston et al., 2007), and competitive
Advantage (Teo, 2007). However this study is more interested in how the smes
Perceive those benefits. Examples of benefits typically associated with
ecommerce adoption are: increase of revenues and profits, reduction in costs,
Improvement in customer service, development of new market segments and
The streamline of business operations. Therefore, hypothesis 1 reflects the
Relationship described:

H1: The perceived relative advantage is positively related to adoption of

ecommerce In this study, perceived compatibility refer to how well e-commerce
fits with the current business processes as well as the suppliers and customers.
According to Grandon and Pearson (2004), compatibility between e-commerce
and firm’sculture, values and preferred work practices is an important factor in
determining adoption. Consequently, the lack of organisational compatibility
may impose constraints on the level of e-commerce used (Gibbs and Kramer,
2004). Therefore, Hypothesis 2 reflects the level of perceived compatibility and
ecommerce adoption:

H2: The perceived compatibility is positively related to adoption of ecommerce.

Perceived complexity is defined as the degree to which a firm perceives the
adoption of e-commerce would be complicated. Many studies have found
significant relationship between complexity and ecommerce adoption (e.g Huy
and Filiatraut 2006; Joen et al. 2006). SMEs might perceive e-commerce as
something which is complex and not applicable to their current level of
business.Since SMEs are known to have low level of managerial and technical
skills, they might perceive implementation of e-commerce as very challenging
(Hussin etal., 2008). Hence, Hypothesis 3 was derived:

H3: The perceived complexity is negatively related to adoption of e-commerce.

In the context of Malaysia, among the major barriers to e-commerce adoption in
Malaysia are: not having e-commerce knowledge, lack of e-commerce skills,
and lack of skilled workers to operate e-commerce (Sulaiman and Jaafar 2003).
Therefore, Hypothesis 4 is derived:

H4: The e-commerce knowledge and expertise is positively related to adoption

of e-commerce. According to Saffu et al. (2008): top management’s enthusiasm
to adopt information technology is one of the factors that contribute towards
adopting of ecommerce. Hypothesis 5 is postulated to reflect this relationship.

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H5: The management attitude towards e-commerce is positively related to
adoption of e-commerce As described in the literature review section, the
external change agents that might influence e-commerce adoption include the
organisation advisors, the government, external consultants, and also
ecommerce solution providers. Hence, Hypothesis 6 is derived:

H6: The adoption of e-commerce is positively related to external change agents

A number of recent studies have discussed how the interactions with other

organisations in a global economy have enforced these SMEs to adopt

ecommerce technologies (e.g Hinson and Abor, 2005; Sarosa and Underwood,
2005; Nirjar and Tylecote, 2005; Jaw and Chen, 2005; Hinson and Sorensen,
2006). This shows that the pressure from trading partners also affect the whether
e-commerce is adopted. Hence, Hypotheses 7 reflects the relationship
postulated:

H7: The adoption of e-commerce is positively related to pressure from trading

Partners Relationships among players within the same industry also affect the
overall industry structure (Gregor and Johnston, 2000). These relationships
determine the extent of competition and rivalry within the industry and play a
role in ecommerce adoption. Therefore, the last hypothesis in this study reflects
this scenario:
H8: The adoption of e-commerce is positively related to pressure from
competitors. As describe in the literature review and reflected in the research
model, below is the summary of the hypotheses developed for this study. There
are altogether eight hypotheses.

H2: Perceived compatibility is positively related to adoption of ecommerce.

H3: The perceived complexity is negatively related to adoption of ecommerce.
Organisational Context.
H4: E-commerce knowledge and expertise is positively related to adoption of e-
commerce.
H5:Management attitude towards e-commerce is positively related to adoption
of ecommerce.
H6:External change agent is positively related to adoption of e-commerce.
H7:Pressure from trading partners is positively related to adoption of
ecommerce.
H8:Pressure from competitors is positively related to adoption of e-commerce.

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As describe in the literature review and reflected in the research model, below is
the summary of the hypotheses developed for this study. There are altogether
eight hypotheses.

Table 1.1: Summary of Hypotheses

No Hypothesis
H1 Technological Context Perceived relative advantage is positively
related to adoption of e-commerce.

H2 Perceived compatibility is positively related to adoption of

ecommerce.
H3 The perceived complexity is negatively related to adoption of
ecommerce.
H4 E-commerce knowledge and expertise is positively related to
adoption of e-commerce.
H5 Management attitude towards e-commerce is positively related to
adoption of ecommerce.

H6 External change agent is positively related to adoption of e-

commerce

H7 Pressure from trading partners is positively related to adoption of

ecommerce.

H8 Pressure from competitors is positively related to adoption of

ecommerce

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4.4 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

After reviewing all the related literature and generating the hypotheses for this
study, the following conceptual framework is illustrated in Figure 1.1 below.
The framework consists of 8 independent variables, all of which are postulated
to affect the same dependent variable, e-commerce adoption.

4.5 SAMPLING DESIGN

In order to collect the necessary response from a large number of SMEs, survey
questionnaires were used. To generalize the results, a sample size of 300 was
targeted. Convenient sampling is used to select the data for this research. A list
of SMEs was obtained from SME Corp. The initial plan was to randomly select
700 SMEs from the Klang Valley region from the list. The respondents would
then be contacted, either via email or post, to the take part in the survey.

4.6 DATA COLLECTION PROCEDURE

a) Questionnaire

A quantitative survey was used to collect the primary data, by using a structured
questionnaire. The questionnaire was designed based on past researches on
ecommerce (Lewis and Cockrill, 2002). The questionnaire was divided into four
sections, as show below:

• Section A: Demographics Profile

• Section B: Organisation Profile
• Section C: E-commerce Adoption
• Section D :E-commerce Adoption Factors

The first section (Section A) asked for the respondents’ demographics, such as
gender, age, education level and current position within the organization. This
section also helped to filter out respondents whose current position is not
executive level or above.

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The second section (Section B) asked about the nature of the organization, such
as the total number of to employees and yearly revenue. The corresponding
answers are then used to verify that the respondents’ company is indeed an
SME, according to the SME definition.

The third section (Section C) determined the current e-commerce adoption level
within the organization. Finally, the fourth section (Section D) contained
questions that represent the e-commerce adoption determinants, as described in
the research framework.

The multiple-item methods were used in the final two sections (Section C and
D). Each item was measured based on a seven-point Likert scale from strongly
disagree (1) to strongly agree (7). The odd number rating scale was adopted as it
allows the respondent to ‘sit on the fence’ by selecting a neutral statement. The
final version of the questionnaire can be viewed in Appendix 1

freecodecamp.org

4.7 Pilot Test

Before the commission of the survey, a pilot test of the structured questionnaire
was conducted, involving several respondents. The questionnaire was assessed

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in terms of ease of understanding, logical consistencies, sequence of the items,
contextual relevance and so to enable the questionnaire to be further refined.

26 respondents from various SMEs participated in the pilot test. Personal visits
were made to managers of selected SMEs, and they were requested to
participate in the survey. Cooper and Schindler (2003) stated that the pilot test
group size may range from 25 to 100 respondents and do not have to be
statistically selected.

The pilot test revealed that the average time duration to complete the
questionnaire is only 5.5 minutes, which is appropriate, considering the number
of questions in the questionnaire. All the pilot test respondents also claimed that
the questions were clear and comprehensible, indicating that the survey had a
relatively low level of difficulty.

5.1 Data Collection

Based on the sampling list, the survey was made available to the shortlisted
respondents. The questionnaire was made into an online form and its URL was
sent to each of the 500 respondents that have email addresses. Another 200
printed version of the survey was posted to the rest.

However, it was discovered that unlike medium-sized enterprises, many of the

small-sized enterprises did not take part in survey, thus resulting in an overall
low response rate.

Therefore, to reach out to small-sized enterprises, physical questionnaires were

then distributed in person to a number of SME’s in the Klang Valley. Field
assistants were used to carry out the survey and collect the necessary data. The
locations visited include Mara Headquarter Building in Kuala Lumpur,
Kompleks PKNS Shah Alam, Kompleks PKNS Bangi, and Diamond Square
Gombak. For each company approached, the personnel was interviewed and
assisted in filling up the questionnaire. This approach was adopted since many
pilot test respondents indicated that they prefer someone to help write down
their responses.

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5.2 DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES

a) Descriptive Analysis

Descriptive statistics were applied to summarize the demographic profile of the

respondents and the mean of each of the factors. Variance and standard
deviation were obtained to measure variability around the mean of a
distribution.

Reliability Analysis

The reliability of the instruments used was one of the concerns in this study. The
reliability scale text would be utilized to determine the instruments validity.
According to Sage et al. (1980), measurements are reliable if the true aspects of
the trait measured, instead of the chance aspects. Therefore, the instrument must
be reliable to the extent that the scores by the respondents should be almost
equal if measurement is repeated.

In order to examine the reliability of the instruments, the Cronbach’s Alpha was
used to measure reliability of the underlying dimensions. The Cronbach’s Alpha
estimate indicates how highly the items in the questionnaire are interrelated in
order to determine the instrument reliability. According to Nunnaly (1978), the
Alpha which is more than 0.7 indicates a high reliability.

Figure1: 1

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 40%

35%

30%

25%

20% male
female
15%

10%

5%

0%
Age16-24 Age25-34 Age 35-49 Age 50+

The above figure 1, shows the Age Group and Gender of the number of
customers who were taken as samples for the sample study. By analysis the
same we could conclude the following:

▪ 65% of the samples belonged to the age group of 16-24 years, which
contained

▪ 35% male samples and 30% female samples.

▪ 20% of the samples belonged to the age group of 25-34 years, which
contained

▪ 12% male samples 8% females samples.

▪ 14% of the samples belonged to the age group 35-49 years, which contained
9% male sample and 5% female samples.

▪ 1% of the samples belonged to the age group of 50+ years, which contained
1% male samples and 0% females samples.

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 Are u aware of flipcart-an ecommerce website?
5%

YES
NO

95%

From the above Figure 2: it can be analysed that:

• 95% of the respondents are aware of Flipcart.

• Only 5% do not know about it.

5.3 Correlation Analysis

Correlation analysis was used to examine whether there was any association
between each of the factors and the extent of e-commerce adoption. The extent
of e-commerce adoption was computed by adding the number of e-commerce
applications being adopted by the respondents, which means that the higher the
score, the higher the adoption.

In determining whether the factors have any influence on the extent of

ecommerce adoption, that is to test the hypotheses formulated earlier, regression
analysis was used. For the purpose of regression analysis, the extent of

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ecommerce adoption is the dependent variable while the factors are the
independent variables. It was performed using the SPSS software.

The hypotheses and their relationships were tested through correlation by

individually measuring e-commerce adoption in relation to each of the factors.
Correlation analysis indicates if a linear relationship exists between two
variables. Although correlation does not indicate the reasons the relationship is
present, the correlation coefficient does tell if the relationship is significant or
not. A perfect positive correlation has a coefficient of 1.0, no correlation has 0
and a perfect negative coefficient has 1.0.

6.1Conclusion and References:

This chapter will answer research questions from the interpretations of the
analysis done and based on this; a general conclusion will be drawn. The
conclusion would explain and discuss the findings of the research in a concise
manner to the objectives defined in the first chapter. Thereafter, the
recommendations will be discussed with reference to the factors affecting
adoption of E-Commerce among Sri Lankan private sector executives.The scope
and limitations will be discussed to identify research boundaries and to address
various issues that were raised during the investigation. Finally, the author will

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discuss future extensions which would enable the reader to be aware of what is
expected in future by the author in this area of interest.

6.2 Conclusion:

This study was aimed at integrating two well known technology adoption
models, the TAM and the TPB, and their relationship with the trust factor or the
Perceived Risk associated with E-Commerce in order to develop a model for
measuring ECommerce adoption factors among Sri Lankan private sector
executives. The framework for adoption and diffusion of E-Commerce (Uzoka
et al., 2007) was selected as the research framework and the conceptual model
was built based on that. The proposed model helped in exploring factors
affecting it and ranking them with respect to its significance in making
decisions for using E-Commerce.

A sample of 389 private sector executives in three different economic sectors,

IT and Telecommunications, Banking and Finance, and Manufacturing was
selected for the study and interviewed using a questionnaire which was
developed to measure the influence of each selected variable towards E-
Commerce adoption. Eleven different hypotheses were proposed in order to
measure the relationship between E-Commerce adoption factors and their rate of
adoption. The model results revealed that Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived
Usefulness, Trust, Subjective Norm and Perceived Behavioral Control are
factors that are positively related to the attitude towards using E-Commerce
frequently. Acceptance of alternative hypotheses H3 which represented a strong
positive correlation between Perceived Ease of Use and E-Commerce adoption,
H4 which represented a strong positive correlation between Perceived
Usefulness and ECommerce adoption and H5 which represented a strong
positive correlation between Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use
further established the findings of the TAM of Davis (1989).

The developed model further revealed that variables that have highest
significance for measuring E-Commerce adoption are Perceived Ease of Use
and Perceived Usefulness. Further, acceptance of those aforementioned
hypotheses aligned with findings of previous literature done by Klopping and
McKinney (2004), Delafrooz et al. (2008) and Sulaiman et al. (2008) which
proved the impact of Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use in E-
Commerce adoption. Acceptance of alternative hypotheses H9 which
represented a moderate positive correlation between Perceived Behavioral
Control and E-Commerce adoption, H10 which represented a moderate positive

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correlation between Subjective Norm and E-Commerce adoption and H11
which represented a moderate positive correlation between Subjective Norm
and Perceived Behavioral Control further established the findings of the TPB of
Ajzen (1991).

The developed model further revealed that the two next most significant
variables for measuring E-Commerce adoption are Perceived Behavioral
Control and Subjective Norm. By accepting those aforementioned hypotheses,
research results aligned with findings of previous literature done by Uzoka et al.
(2007) and Hernandez et al. (2009). Acceptance of alternative hypothesis H6
which represented a small positive co-relation between trust and E-Commerce
adoption further established findings of Olusegun et al. (2006), Wang et al.
(2008), Connolly and Bannister (2007), Slyke et al. (2004), Jahangir and Begum
(2008), Chang and Zhu (2006) and Sulaiman et al. (2008) who discussed the
impact of trust or Perceived Risk in E-Commerce adoption.

Further, the rejection of alternative hypothesis H8 revealed that there was no

impact on Subjective Norm by the trust factor in E-Commerce adoption.
Anyway, the acceptance of alternative hypotheses H1, H2 and H7 revealed that
there was a small positive impact on Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived
Usefulness and Perceived Behavioral Control respectively by the trust factor in
E-Commerce adoption. In other words, the increase of Perceived Risk or the
decrease of trust on E-Commerce transactions negatively correlated with
Perceived Ease of Use, Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Behavioral Control.
The analysis of E-Commerce experience of private sector executives revealed
that people use E-Commerce mainly for purchasing goods and services, and
paying utility bills and installments.

Further, it emphasized that people tend to use E-Commerce mainly for

purchasing hi-technology products and digital products from the web market
space. In other words, instead of buying daily consumer products, people use E-
Commerce for purchasing some specific products that need more comparisons
and observations. When analyzing factors affecting adoption of E-Commerce,
research results indicated that the attitude factor which can be further described
by Perceived Usefulness and Perceived Ease of Use has the highest significance
on the selected group in the decision making process. Other factors that
contribute to the decision making process in using ECommerce were Subjective
Norm and Perceived Behavioral Control.

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The most interesting thing was that no one had decided to refuse E-Commerce
in future applications. The majority was willing to use it or experiment with it,
in future situations. Two demographic variables, disposable income and
education level, are positively related to Internet shopping while people in age
group 20-40 dominated in purchasing products and services over the Internet. In
other words, young educated professionals who have higher disposable income
are using ECommerce more frequently than others. People who pay more
household bills displayed a significantly high volume of E-Commerce
transactions.

However, the spending on Internet and frequency of online purchases were on

very low levels, because of less availability of buying options and low trust
associated with Ecommerce sites. Development of Telecommunications
infrastructure which can create high awareness and opportunities will improve
the Internet usage and the E-Commerce involvement of people in Sri Lanka.
With a matching E-Commerce model, there is a high possibility in creating a
very active E-Commerce community in future, if authorities take the correct
actions soon.

6.3 Recommendations:

E-Commerce companies as well as those planning to start E-Commerce

operations should take into consideration the needs and wants of each consumer
group as well as the factors preventing them from involving in dealing online.
Those companies should take steps to minimize the fear for online transactions
in the consumer’s mind. In other words, individual online transactions should be
secure enough for someone to reduce his Perceived Risk and use credit card
numbers in the web market. Improving the reputation and brand image as well
as providing specific warranties, will also help in improving consumer
confidence.

On the other hand credit card providers should take enough Online stores must
demonstrate that online shopping is not only convenient, safe, easy and fun;
they must also offer other incentives and motivations to attract consumers.
Thus, addition to building consumer confidence, offering more rewarding
shopping experiences than what is presently available, would benefit in

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increasing a number of consumers to shop online and to continue doing so in the
future. Some of the banks have already taken steps to promote online
transactions and decided to provide rewards to their customers who use online
facilities to pay utility bills and installments. Further, all web stores should
enhance the quality of their products and come up with innovative ideas to cater
to different consumer needs. It is necessary to deliver a product that shows same
quality and capability to what is displayed in online product catalogs.

The proposed model of E-Commerce adoption will not only help managers to
grasp the whole process of E-Commerce from the viewpoint of consumer
behavior; but will help them to focus appropriately on the factors affecting each
process. Moreover, the results of customer interests in Perceived Usefulness,
Perceived Ease of Use, Subjective Norm and Perceived Behavioral Control, and
Perceived Risk in E-Commerce show that online customers interacted with each
process in the E-Commerce model differently depending on their individual
characteristics. These differences will yield insights that can help a manager to
serve better in different customer segments. As an example a web store can
achieve the top level management of a particular firm and by making an
Commerce awareness and impressing its usefulness, the store can increase its
online transactions and customer base.

Most private sector executives do their financial transactions and shopping

through internet in order to increase the productivity and save time. They
perceived significantly greater benefits in terms of convenience, wider selection
and usefulness. Therefore, online retailers need to ensure that the online
shopping process through their websites is easy, simple and convenient for
consumers to shop online.Further, online retailers need to provide competitive
price advantages for products in order to attract online customers to their
websites and encourage them to make a purchase decision. In order to avoid
intense price competition, online retailers need to find other ways to
differentiate themselves from their competitors.

Therefore, the findings of the research suggest that web stores need to provide
more convenience and product ranges in order to attract more online customers.
Further, the availability of intelligent search engines and comparing shopping
agents will enable the consumer to easily obtain product information and
compare product offerings from various online retailers. It should be noted that

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web site developers and designers have to carefully evaluate how and why a
visitor uses their sites. More specifically, what shopping process or task is the
site needed to support, and how well does the site and the underlying
technology fit that specific shopping task? Users can visit a web site for
different purposes. For example users may visit the site to seek data on one
product, to find information about criteria for comparison, to compare products
with competitors in terms of price differences, quality, performance etc, to
obtain information about future developments of the product, to make one
purchase, or to make multiple purchases.

In order to achieve these potential tasks that a website has to serve, the web site
designers and the top level management in cooperate marketing should assess
how well the web site fits these needs and how far the web site can achieve
these needs. It is necessary to make sure that product information is sufficiently
detailed, accurate and easy to find. Further, web stores need to be updated
regularly in order to provide latest information to the customer. They should be
readable and easy to access in terms of performance. The ultimate objective of
the web store in increasing revenue should be to increase the proportion of
actual transactions to the number of web hits.

7.1 References:

Information and data related to the project has been taken from the sources
below, special thanks to the editors for making the tasks earlier:

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• http://www.digitsmitch.com/ecommerce-definition.html
• http://online-ecommerce-tips.blogspot.in/2010/06/g2cgovernment-
tocitizen.html
• www.sxccal.edu/msccs/ecommerce1.pdf
• www.flipcart.com/about-us
• www.org.com
• www.wikipedia.com
• www.surveymonkey.com/s/K2VVBZY
• www.uop.edu.jo
• www.siliconindia.com
• www.individual.utoronto.ca
• www.investopedia.com

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